Foothill cheerleaders going for national championship

The cheer program at Foothill High School is not only turning heads — it’s winning.

In December, the team won first-place in two regional competitions and is going for gold at nationals.

The competitive teams are putting the school on the map and calling into question what it means to be a cheerleader.

“Competitive cheerleading is completely different from game-time cheerleading,” says Coach Nicole Lecarner, who bristles at the notion that cheer is just about supporting other sports.

This brand of cheer looks like an aerobic fusion of dance and gymnastics and is coming into its own as a stand-alone sport.

The new cheerleaders might still root for the football team, but that’s only part of their game.

The origins of Foothill's competitive cheer team

Foothill cheer is a four-team, 56-girl force to be reckoned with. But they weren't always this good.

Ally Waggoner remembers a time when the cheer team used to get booed at its own assemblies.

"It was kind of like a student tradition... like when they boo the freshmen," said Ally Waggoner, who cheered for Foothill High all four years and is now an assistant coach at the school. "It really affected our self-confidence as a group."

Then Coach Nicole Lecarner came on the scene five years ago. Lecarner had cheered competitively in high school and arrived at Foothill with stories of competitions won and a lot of self-confidence. Parents were receptive and asked her to start a competitive team for Foothill High School.

The school went from having a 20-girl squad that had never competed to a program with two award-winning competitive teams as well as a robust sideline cheer program that shows up at football, basketball and CIF games.

"We were a completely different group of girls once she came," said Waggoner, who was a sophomore when Lecarner walked on as head coach five years ago.

The teams practice about 12 hours a week, including twice-weekly practices at a special gymnastics facility in Costa Mesa called Team OC, where the girls learn to flip and tumble with expert coaches, safety mats and trampolines.

Sideline cheer vs. competitive cheer

The cheer team's success has caused tension between Lecarner and school administrators, who have different visions of what cheer is — and could be.

"The administration has an old-school view of cheer. They just see the skirts and pompons," said Lecarner, who also works as a funding manager at a private mortgage bank in Newport Beach. "What they do for themselves (competitive cheer) is as important as what they do for others (sideline cheer)."

Assistant Principal Diane Blackstone, who is the cheer advisor, thinks it's "wonderful" that the girls compete, but says if she had to chose between a competitive cheer team or one that simply cheers on other teams, she'd choose the latter because it's in the interest of the entire student body rather than just one team.

"It's been like that since the dawn of cheerleading... I can't imagine it any other way," Blackstone said. "Can you imagine going to a high school football team and not seeing cheerleaders?"

Foothill athletic director Vince Brown, who is quick to point out that cheer is considered an activity by the district and therefore not directly under his administrative umbrella, says he understands why Lecarner and parents are pushing the competitive program, noting the potential for college scholarships and national notoriety.

But he concedes his view of cheer remains "old-fashioned."

"For me, what's essential is serving the needs of being a support group (for CIF-sanctioned sports)," he said.

All of the girls who spoke with the Tustin News said they loved the excitement of cheering at football games as well as the thrill of competition.

"The football games are my favorite (sport to cheer for)" said junior Kaitlin Rackliffe, who is on both the competitive and sideline teams. "The boys get very competitive which helps us girls get the crowd excited."

Rackliffe also said competitive cheer is "a whole other ball game" that requires tremendous physical and mental endurance.

"Most people only see us on the sidelines. They don't see the hours of practice or know how dangerous the sport is," Rackliffe said.

"In football, you can get tackled, but in cheerleading you're putting people in the air... it's really fierce."

Cheerleading as its own sport?

The physical and mental demands of competitive cheer are creating a new brand of athlete that is driven not only by school spirit, but also by a desire to win competitions — and college scholarships.

Juliette Palanca, 14, was a gymnast for 10 years before she switched to dance in middle school. Last year, the Villa Park native transferred to Foothill High as a freshman because of its competitive cheer program.

"I was going to go to Villa Park (High School), but its program wasn't competitive. I was thinking of Beckman, but I found that Foothill was the best one."

Palanca said cheer was a natural transition for her, as her background in gymnastics makes her an excellent tumbler and dance taught her balance. She trains with an all star club team called Pink Lightening, which competes all over the country but practices at a multi-purpose gym warehouse in Costa Mesa called Team OC

The facility has spring-padded floors and foam block landing pits that are necessary to safely learn and master the gymnastic elements of tumbling, pyramids and stunts.

All the girls on Foothill cheer practice twice weekly at Team OC, but Palanca is one of only two girls who trains with an all star club team. Between her Foothill cheer and the all-stars, Palanca says she train 20 hours a week and has her sights set on college cheer.

"Colleges are giving scholarships for this. It's a big deal," she said.

Kyle Prinzing is another high school student who sees cheer as his ticket to higher education. He started training at Team OC six months ago and hopes to make it onto team Phoenix, the most elite of Team OC's club teams.

"I didn't do so well in high school," the Yorba Linda High School senior said, referring to his grades. "I'm looking for a way to go (to college) for free."

One of Palanca's all star teammates, Sara Mora, says she does club cheer because her school team doesn't compete. Mora is a sophomore at Corona del Mar High.

"Our principal wants us to stay focused on the sports teams," Mora said.

Mora's mother, Karin Crockett, says there is "zero support" for competitive cheer at Corona del Mar High, even though Corona del Mar Middle School — on the same campus — has a competitive cheer program.